Lease was up on my 2013 Leaf SL in September, in which I elected to extend for 6 months. I originally was planning on going with the Bolt, but didn't think it would be ready in the Great Lakes region by March 2017 when I was required to turn in the car and was still a bit uncomfortable ordering a car that I had not test driven. I know reviews have been very good overall, but there have been notes that the Bolt is lacking a bit in interior quality and comfort - two aspects I have been very pleased with in the Leaf.

Anyway, I decided to get the 2016 Leaf SL. Yes, the range is not where I would like it to be, but the Nissan NCTC program actually mitigates this pretty well for me, as a lot of the miles I put on are between Milwaukee and Madison and both are part of the program. Here is how the deal panned out:

In the end, I was pretty happy with the deal. It was only $9 per month higher than what I had with the 2013 SL, but now have the increased range, NCTC, and I know the reduced residual makes it harder to keep the payments static from 2013. Dealer (Gordie Boucher in Greenfield, WI) claims he lost $2300 on the deal, but who knows.

Heading back Monday to pick up our first leaf!Details:2017 sv- gun metallic-black interiorList price- $35455Dealer rebates- $5500Other Rebates: city of Boulder, and the biggest game changer is as of 1/1/17 the new Colorado law that lets the dealer have the $2500 directly from the state EV rebate. This takes the $2500 directly off the top of the lease.These all together = 12,700Cap cost=17,25524 month leaseWith 0 down and taxes rolled into the monthly payment will be $250.

I emailed and went to 4 different dealers . Boulder Nissan was in a different level all together. They are knowledgeable and many of them drive Leafs. All the other Denver area dealers basically had no clue how the rebate was changing 1/1/17 and were arguing with me. I even tried to get a deal on a couple left over 16's to buy outright if they could work a smoking deal. None seemed to want to get rid of them. If your in the market I recommend Boulder Nissan for a lease.Anyhow really looking forward to picking up our first EV tomorrow!

powersurge wrote:So if you bought the car after the lease, your total cost (without taxes) would be 20,600 for a 33,000 car. I never leased, so I don't know if there are more charges.

That is very similar to what I got for my 24kwh S. The benefit I got is that I got a monthly payment of $300 for 6 years (72 months) at 0% financing. If you lease, you would have to cough up 9100 dollars at the end of your lease in cash...

I personally like the idea of buying because no one can take the car out of my hands... Remember the EV!??

Hi powersurge,

Sorry for not replying sooner (too busy enjoying the holidays with my leaf! - story for another time).

Anyway, your $20,600 buyout number is missing some details. There's also a $2500 state rebate that I had to apply for on my own, and $395 lease termination fee, and 9.5% sales tax ($864.50) on the residual value. So if there weren't any further incentives, my out of pocket to buyout the leaf would be: $21,860 - 2500 == $19,360 (inclusive of all taxes and fees)

Now the icing on the cake will come in spring of 2019. If used values of the old leaf dropped as quickly as the 2013's did, then I expect to receive a buyout offer from NMAC (just like I did for my 2013 leaf). But unlike last year, I won't be hemming and hawing to take the offer!! I'm hoping for ~$5000 off to bring it inline with last year's offer. So all in all, it's better to lease a leaf and buy it out, than to purchase it outright. One of the few cases where leasing is better.

Expect to receive $7500 tax credit from federal government when I get my 2017 tax return.

Sounds like a decent deal for a 30Kwh SV Leaf or $16.5k if you get the full $7500. Note to get the max credit you have to have at least a $7500 tax liability(or what you owe) so because of this I only got ~$6k, which still isn't bad. I figured if I had got the full credit my '13S would have cost ~$20k and I only have the S with the 24Kwh battery. Sure you could have saved even more looking for a used Leaf but there is some satisfaction in purchasing a new vehicle, for sure you know how its been driven

Plans for home charging: L1 that came with vehicle right now - waiting for ClipperCreek (HCS-40P) L2 charger purchased off Amazon - $589

Expect to receive $7500 tax credit from federal government when I get my 2017 tax return. Had to change my W2 allowances but have the rest of 2017 to owe at least $7,500 and hopefully not a penny more!

PS - NC peeps looking to purchase - there is a $10K incentive from 'Plug-In NC' right now till end of March or fund run out. That residual value was just too much of a gamble for me - that and I'm sure the tech will be dramatically different in 3 years!

2/8/2017 Edit - Added Residual value. Carved a slice of humble pie for not knowing tax credit stayed with leasing company. Made appointment on calendar to notify payroll to reverse that W2 allowance change. Poured 16oz IPA from Triple C Brewing Co and patted self on back for best I could do with what I had to work with. Yea me. 2/8/2017 Edit - Modified Edit date above to reflect current year. Took note of ABV on Triple C.

Last edited by phish4me on Wed Feb 08, 2017 7:18 pm, edited 2 times in total.

Plans for home charging: L1 that came with vehicle right now - waiting for ClipperCreek (HCS-40P) L2 charger purchased off Amazon - $589

Expect to receive $7500 tax credit from federal government when I get my 2017 tax return. Had to change my W2 allowances but have the rest of 2017 to owe at least $7,500 and hopefully not a penny more!

PS - NC peeps looking to purchase - there is a $10K incentive from 'Plug-In NC' right now till end of March or fund run out. That residual value was just too much of a gamble for me - that and I'm sure the tech will be dramatically different in 3 years!

As garba said, the tax credit goes to you only if you _purchase_ it. If you lease the vehicle, the tax credit goes to the leasing company, and your purchase price (or capital cost) was supposed to be discounted by that $7500.

Since your per month payment of $285 seems about right for 15k miles/year, I'm guessing your accepted price number is off. What was the residual (end of lease purchase price)?